A perfect Valentine's Day

It's not Valentine's Day unless it includes a bouquet of at least a dozen red roses, a box of gourmet chocolates (not those stupid Walgreens kind) and a dinner out --- including fine champagne.

Valentine's Day needs a pretty card and some nice underwear to top it off. Oh, and candles. Candles make the day perfect.

This is how most women think. Valentine's Day can be quite stressful on men who are trying to make sure their girlfriends or wives are satisfied. If they don't measure up, those women can make the day a living nightmare.

Instead of thinking all that you want, think about all that you can give on Valentine's Day. Nate and I are on a pretty tight budget, and we went out for dinner last weekend so it was a home-cooked meal for us tonight.

We also don't do presents for holidays, instead saving up for vacations, and so it might not seem like Valentine's Day was that special.

You know what made it special though? My wonderful husband.

I thought about how Valentine's Day shouldn't be concentrating on what I get but on how I could make the day nice for him. It was simple, but I got up at 5:30 a.m. when he was getting ready for work and I made him an egg sandwich and some French press coffee that he could take with him.

He has been craving cookies since our oven has been broken, so I made a giant cookie cake and baked it low and slow (for 1.5 hours) in the top oven of the double oven. (The heating element is too close so it's not good for baked goods. They burn.) It turned out OK in the end.

Then I made some heart-shaped homemade raviolis, because Nate loves homemade ravioli. They are tedious, but I knew that he loved them.

After dinner, he was all smiles. He said it hit the spot.

That smile was all I needed.

That smile makes a perfect Valentine's Day.